It looks more and more like Flo from Progressive Insurance will be watching the Bloomberg Network on Comcast by herself at the Eastern Sports and Outdoors Show. This comes after Reed Exhibitions, a UK based company, prohibited the display and sale of certain tactical weapons, high-cap magazines and would not allow vendors to display logos of some American manufacturers that vendors sell.

A boycott of the show by conservative sportsmen and businesses throughout the country continues to gain momentum. The show originally had Cabelas, The Outdoors Channel as sponsors, now the sole remaining sponsors are Progressive Insurance and Comcast - two very liberal companies.

The boycott is all over the news and local radio talk shows in Central PA. A Facebook page for the boycott has gained over 10,000 friends in the last several days. This far surpasses the Show's official Facebook page.

Nearly all guest speakers and celebs have boycotted the show, causing the promoter to change their website graphics at the last minute to basically look barren.

This is a huge win for thousands of conservatives working behind the scenes make the boycott work to protect our 2nd Amendment rights.

A trade show without people walking among the booths is a waste of good marketing money. In addition to having issues with the display restrictions I’m guessing that many of the pull-outs are in anticipation of a weak attendance.

This comes after Reed Exhibitions, a UK based company, prohibited the display and sale of certain tactical weapons, high-cap magazines and would not allow vendors to display logos of some American manufacturers that vendors sell.

Limey gun grabbers today and back during the American Revolution

10
posted on 01/22/2013 1:20:58 PM PST
by dennisw
(The first principle is to find out who you are then you can achieve anything -- Buddhist monk)

I suspect the few remaining vendors will not do business again with this promoter. There are other promoters out there. Carlisle Exhibitions is having a sportsmen's show later in the year. It has the potential to be bigger than the one in Harrisburg. It is also in Carlisle, which is about 15 miles from Harrisburg. Carlisle is far from being the hell hole Harrisburg is, and they certainly have fewer of Obama's people running around.

“As a hunting-focused event, we welcome exhibitors who wish to showcase products and firearms that serve the traditional needs of the sport. Clearly, we strongly support the 2nd Amendment. However, this year we have made the decision not to include certain products that in the current climate may attract negative attention that would distract from the strong focus on hunting and fishing at this family-oriented event and possibly disrupt the broader positive experience of our guests. “

The only speaker listed is Jamie Grey Olympic Gold Medalist from the US Olympic team for three position 22.

the others are cooks, dog trainers, fishng experts, hunting experts of some fashion.

James Debney, President and CEO of Smith & Wesson, said, As a market leader in the firearm industry and an iconic brand that spans 160 years of American history, we believe it is important to make our position perfectly clear: We support the Second Amendment and the rights of our law-abiding customers to purchase these and all legal firearms.

Therefore, we are unable to support any organization or event that prohibits legal firearms, or otherwise restricts a citizens lawful and constitutional rights

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (January 22, 2013) -— Smith & Wesson, a U.S. based leader in firearm manufacturing and design, today announced that the Company will not attend nor will it support or participate in the 2013 Eastern Sports and Outdoor Show in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. The announcement comes after the decision of show management company, Reed Exhibitions, to prohibit the display of modern sporting rifles in this years event.

James Debney, President and CEO of Smith & Wesson, said, As a market leader in the firearm industry and an iconic brand that spans 160 years of American history, we believe it is important to make our position perfectly clear: We support the Second Amendment and the rights of our law-abiding customers to purchase these and all legal firearms. Therefore, we are unable to support any organization or event that prohibits legal firearms, or otherwise restricts a citizen’s lawful and constitutional rights.

About Smith & Wesson
Smith & Wesson Holding Corporation (NASDAQ Global Select: SWHC) is a U.S.-based leader in firearm manufacturing and design, delivering a broad portfolio of quality firearms, related products and training to the consumer, law enforcement, and military markets. The companys brands include Smith & Wesson®, M&P® and Thompson/Center Arms. Smith & Wesson facilities are located in Massachusetts and Maine. For more information on Smith & Wesson, call (800) 331-0852 or log on to www.smith-wesson.com.

That is correct. If Mossberg pulls out, there will be a huge hole in the show. Mossberg is next to Thompson. Ruger is next to Thompson across an isle, and Trijicon, SecureIT Tactical and Combative Edge are across another isle from Ruger. Ruger, S&W, Thompson, Trijicon, SecureIT and Combative Edge are all boycotting.

There is a coordinated effort clear one corner of a hall to an entire hall to all of the halls at the show. There are a lot of people making this boycott work.

Reed Exhibitions itself is a huge target for a broader boycott, so many exhibitions and tradeshows. I suspect they’d not be too thrilled about being made a pariah by half the US population numerically and more than that as far as attendance, registered buyers and exhibitors.

A year is a lot of time for motivated major players to pull together an alternative to the SHOT Show and ESOS, both of which are under Reed. Might want to put them in a gun-friendly red state, for starters.

I know for a fact that Reed is threatening to sue the boycotting small companies. I have also heard they are not threatening to sue larger companies like S&W and Cabela's. I think Reed is setup for a breach of contract suit. On Nov. 26, Reed advertised at new Tactical Weapons section to the show. (funny, I just went to look for it in googlecache and it was scrubbed since yesterday.)

I hope that in the long run, those that are standing for the 2nd Amendment will receive regular business, and those who don't, we'll they can go out of business.

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